The Sale Game

The Sale Game

Let’s talk about something that brings a rush of excitement and satisfaction…you guessed it…SALES! Nothing feels quite like knowing that you used your cunning bargaining skills to haggle your way down to 70% off. Well you sure “stuck it” to that store didn’t you? They’ll probably be out of business next week from selling it so far below cost right? Wrong. There is one important aspect that we as consumers have forgotten in the flash and lights of the sale phenomenon…MATH. Most of us hated math in school, and retailers capitalize on that by using smoke and mirrors to distract you from the truth…LOOK AT THE ACTUAL NUMBERS. It’s true, most of us would love to believe that salesman was just a nice guy to give you an extra 20% off since you were his “best buddy” (even though you just met him), but the truth is that a business will never sell something below their cost…it just doesn’t make sense.

Today, you will get a free crash course in math to help make sense of the mind-numbing psychology behind a sale. Let’s take a look at an example from an industry that we all know and love…jewelry.

The picture below is from a jewelry store in Oklahoma City that is having a “going out of business sale”. Sounds like they would have the best deal since they are going out of business right? Let’s take a look at the numbers...

So it looks like this diamond was a whopping $39,900 originally, then they dropped it down to $23,939 (40% off), then, since they were having the “going out of business sale” they took off another 20% off bringing it down to $19,151. Finally, after a little haggling, they dropped the price to just a little over $18,000. That is a savings of $21,900!!! Wow, what a deal!

Now let’s look at an alternative. Below is a screenshot from our website that allows the public to buy diamonds and engagement rings at wholesale prices.

The stone is almost identical in every aspect, and the price is $10,955! How could that be?

Well the answer lies in the first number from the other diamond…$39,900. That number is marked up over 360% to start with. Starting to see how the game is played now? Of course they can give you over 60% off, and then let you haggle with them to make yourself feel good…but in the end, they still win and you paid WAY too much.

Feeling sick to your stomach yet? That’s perfectly normal because this is a game that has been engrained into consumers for a long time. Now that you know how the game is played, you have leveled the playing field.